Posts in the Fiction Category at Savvy Verse & Wit, Page 51

Tainted by Brooke Morgan

January 22, 2010 by Serena

Brooke Morgan’s debut novel, Tainted, is a thrill ride in a small, shoreline town in Massachusetts — Shoreham — as Holly Barrett meets the man of her dreams on a bus. Jack Dane is dashing, charming, and British — an accent to die for — but there is something below the surface that is not so inviting.

“Tell your heart lies enough times and it will fashion them into the truth.” (Page 34)

Holly’s had a tough youth from getting pregnant at a young age to losing her parents and struggling as a single parent. Jack swoops in and casts a spell that she is unwilling to break, despite the objections of her family and friends and only knowing him for about three weeks. Morgan’s writing is upfront and engaging, though at times chapters shift from the point of view of Holly, her five-year old daughter, her grandfather, and others.

“‘Jesus, Holl. You’re traveling faster than the speed of love.'” (Page 106)

Readers will eat up these pages, trying to uncover Jack’s dark secrets, while at the same time wishing they could shake Holly into her right mind. At times, Holly is very naive about Jack and moves too quickly into a relationship, which can be attributed to her inexperience with men and her self-imposed isolation. However, there are a number of occasions where Holly sees clear red flags in Jack’s behavior and chooses to ignore them, reminiscent of abused women. Morgan’s debut novel is a solid thriller with many twists and turns that will have some readers guessing until the very end.

To enter this INTERNATIONAL giveaway for 1 copy of Tainted by Brooke Morgan:

1. Leave a comment on this review.
2. Blog, Tweet, Facebook, or otherwise spread the word about the giveaway.
3. Comment on the guest post.

Deadline is Jan. 29, 2010, at 11:59PM EST

About the Author:

Brooke Morgan is a Bostonian who now lives in London with her two children. Tainted is her first novel.

If you are interested in Tainted, you should check out the rest of the TLC Book Tour.

This is my 5th book for the 2010 New Authors Challenge.

I’m considering this for my 2nd book, a romantic thriller, for the 2010 Thriller & Suspense Reading Challenge.

FTC Disclosure: Thanks to TLC Book Tours, HarperCollins, and Brooke Morgan for sending me a free copy of Tainted for review. Clicking on image or title links will lead to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase necessary, though appreciated.

Filed Under: 2010 Thriller and Suspense Reading Challenge, fiction, giveaway, New Authors Challenge, Read in 2010, review copy, reviews, tlc book tours Tagged With: Brooke Morgan, Tainted

Pride & Prejudice & Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

January 13, 2010 by Serena

“Sadly, this action prevented her from saving the second musket man, who had been pulled from his perch. He screamed as the dreadfuls held him down and began to tear organs from his living belly and feast upon them.” (Page 117)

Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is a mash-up of Jane Austen’s classic, Pride and Prejudice, and a zombie conflict. Grahame-Smith effectively weaves in the zombie attacks and how the Bennet clan dispatches them with skill. A majority of this novel is Austen’s words, but the dialogue and descriptions that are modified to accommodate zombies are done with aplomb.

“‘My dear Miss Elizabeth, I have the highest opinion in the world in your excellent judgment in all matters within the scope of your understanding, particularly in the slaying of Satan’s armies, but permit me to say, that there must be a wide difference between the established forms of ceremony amongst the laity, and those which regulate the clergy. After all you may wield God’s sword, but I wield His wisdom. And it is wisdom, dear cousin, which will ultimately rid us of our present difficulties with the undead.'” (Page 77)

Fun and entertaining on a base level, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is an exercise in revision and an examination of Austen’s characters in a new light. Many readers will disagree with Grahame-Smith’s portrayal of Lizzy as a cutthroat assassin who is quickly turned by her own emotions or strict sense of duty and honor, particularly since she often talks of dispatching her peers for slighting her family, imagines beheading her own sister Lydia simply because she prattles on, and other unmentionable actions.

“‘Jane, no one who has ever seen you together can doubt his affection. Miss Bingley, I am sure, cannot. She may not be a warrior, but she has cunning enough. Dearest sister, I implore you — this unhappiness is best remedied by the hasty application of a cutlass to her throat.'” (Page 95)

However, one of the most perceptive and playfully done sequences in the novel is the sparring match between Mr. Darcy and Lizzy. Some readers could find this sequence too forceful, but others may view the physical combat between the characters as just a manifestation of their verbal tete-a-tete in the original novel. The elements of zombies and ninjas provide additional circumstances that further delineate the class differences Austen sought to examine in her novels, enabling readers to further investigate the social conventions and prejudices inherent in this society.

There are other instances, however, in which these revised scenes do not work as well, and many of the social conventions of the time are overlooked in favor of ensuring the Bennet sisters, who are of little means, were shipped to the Orient for training in the deadly arts — even if it was with the inferior Chinese Shaolin monks –and were prepared for combat, which is inevitable in a nation nearly overrun by the undead. In Austen’s novel, it would be unconventional for Lizzy to converse so openly with Wickham about Darcy, and it would be outside convention for Darcy to write her a letter to explain himself. Here, convention is defied even more so in that the Bennet women are trained to kill — even if it is only zombies — and Lizzy openly displays her talents and shuns marriage.

Austen purists will NOT enjoy this novel unless they loosen their reverence for the author’s work. Overall, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is a creative revision with an edge that modern readers may enjoy for its drama and action-packed zombie slayings. There is a lot more to this rendition than simple entertainment.

This is my 3rd book for the 2010 New Authors Challenge, though should I consider it a new author if a majority of the book is written by Jane Austen, who is an old favorite.

This is my 2nd book for the Jane Austen Challenge 2010!

FTC Disclosure: I received a free copy of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies from FSB Associates for review. Clicking on titles or images can bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase necessary, though appreciated.

Filed Under: fiction, FSB Associates, Jane Austen Challenge 2010, New Authors Challenge, Quirk Classics, Read in 2010, review copy Tagged With: jane austen, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Seth Grahame-Smith

Ravens by George Dawes Green (audio)

January 12, 2010 by Serena

Ravens by George Dawes Green on audio, which I received from a giveaway on Peeking Between the Pages, is action-packed, engaging, and unique. Readers are first introduced to Shaw McBride and Romeo Zderko, two young gentlemen fed up with the “system” and anxious to leave Ohio for the great unknown and make their mark. Unfortunately, Shaw has a dark side and Romeo can lose control of his emotions.

The young men are traveling south and end up in Brunswick, Georgia, where they learn the identity of the state lottery winners — the Boatwrights. Shaw concocts a plan to garner the men at least half if not more of the $318 million prize.

The narrators shift between the Boatwrights, the local police officer, Romeo, and Shaw, with Maggi-Meg Reed’s Southern accent pretty close to the real thing and Robert Petkoff slightly dramatic in his portrayal. However, each character’s voice was easily discernible, making it easy to follow the shifting narration. Listeners will be drawn into the plight of the Boatwrights and may even sympathize with Romeo, but Shaw is another story. The tension is palatable, and readers will be kept guessing as to how the extortion situation will be resolved.

Ravens on audio made the commute fly by, and those that love mysteries and thrillers will find this a satisfactory listen. My husband and I often became absorbed in the story and had to wait for a chapter to end outside my office building in the mornings before I got out of the car. He loved the ending the best, though it is graphic, because it resolves the situation in a satisfactory way.

This is my 2nd book for the 2010 New Authors Challenge.

I’m considering this for my 1st book in the psychological thriller category for the 2010 Thriller & Suspense Reading Challenge.

FTC Disclosure: I received my free copy of the Ravens audiobook from a fellow blogger. Clicking on title and image links will lead you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase necessary, though appreciated.

Filed Under: 2010 Thriller and Suspense Reading Challenge, audiobooks, fiction, giveaway win, Hachette Books, New Authors Challenge, Read in 2010, reviews Tagged With: George Dawes Green, Ravens

Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: The Last Man in the World by Abigail Reynolds

January 5, 2010 by Serena

Abigail Reynolds’ Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: The Last Man in the World examines what it would have happened in Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen had Elizabeth Bennet not refused Mr. Darcy’s marriage proposal. Lizzy is stuck in a situation in which she is forced to accept Darcy’s proposal, or at least she feels that is the case. The marriage happens quickly and Lizzy is filled with anxiety about her role as Mrs. Darcy, what to expect from her husband, and how to overcome her prejudice against her him.

“Was his pride so great that it did not occur to him she might refuse him? Elizabeth opened her mouth to deny his allegation, but before any sound could emerge, she recognized the danger.” (Page 6 of ARC)

Reynolds has a firm grasp of Austen’s work and her Pride & Prejudice characters, and that knowledge shines through as we follow Lizzy and Darcy into their alternate universe. From misunderstandings to barbs, Darcy and Lizzy spar with one another and hide their true feelings as they fear the other’s reproach. The servants and the housekeeper, Mrs. Reynolds, are just as they should be — hovering on the outskirts and ready to lend help when necessary.

“But when he turned his head sideways on the pillow, his eyes clouded with the drug, she leaned towards him to meet his lips with her own. It was a gentle kiss, but his lips were hot against hers. Elizabeth almost shook with the emotion of it.” (Page 108 of ARC)

Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: The Last Man in the World is a treat that will transport readers into regency England with a set of new and old characters. Lizzy and Darcy may be one of the greatest classic love stories, and Reynolds‘ spin on the love story reads like a classic. Lizzy is still strong-willed, but tentative in her new marriage and her new circumstances. Darcy is a bit harsh at times, but readers will forgive him his transgressions. Readers should be cautioned that there are some intimate scenes that give this novel a more contemporary feel. All in all, this is a delightful variation.

***Giveaway Details***

Sourcebooks is offering 2 copies of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: The Last Man in the World to U.S./Canadian readers of this blog.

1. Leave a comment on this interview about what you would like to ask Abigail Reynolds.
2. Leave a comment on my review of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy.
3. Blog, tweet, Facebook, etc. this giveaway and leave a link here.

Deadline is Jan. 11, 2010, 11:59PM EST

FTC Disclosure: I received a free copy of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy from the Sourcebooks for review. Clicking on titles or images can bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase necessary, though appreciated.

This is my 1st book for the Jane Austen Challenge 2010!

Filed Under: fiction, giveaway, Jane Austen Challenge 2010, Read in 2010, reviews, sourcebooks Tagged With: abigail reynolds, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: The Last Man in the World

When She Flew by Jennie Shortridge

December 28, 2009 by Serena

Jennie Shortridge’s When She Flew is a beautifully written novel about pivotal decisions and their unexpected consequences. Told from the point of view of Officer Jessica Villareal and Melinda aka Lindy Wiggs, the novel shifts from the legal ramifications of Villareal’s decision not to split up Melinda from her family and Melinda’s experiences with her Iraq War veteran father, her drug addicted mother, and her new home. The novel is peppered with beautiful imagery and a number of passages with birds, which emphasize flight and escape.

“Pater keeps looking out the windows, walking from on to the other, hitching up his pants. he reminds me of a finch, all nervous and fidgety, eyes darting this way and that.” (Page 255)

Lindy’s narration focuses mainly on the love of the forest in which she lives, of her father, and even of her mother whom she left behind, but there are glimpses into the terrible events of her life under the guardianship of her mother while her father served his country. She misses her mother, but for the most part there is a sense of contentment until one day she follows a blue heron too far.

“The central library was my favorite building. It’s like going to a palace full of books. I feel like a princess or an important person when I walk up the steps toward that huge brick building with its pretty windows and a roof that looks like a steeple, and go inside the tall oak doors, and the man in uniform smiles and says, ‘Good afternoon.’ I feel even more like royalty when we glide across the shiny stone floor. Everything is so elegant that I want to just stand and look but Pater always says to hurry along.” (Page 14)

Officer Villareal is a mother who hasn’t exactly lived up to her own expectations as an officer or as a mother, but she copes with her circumstances by working and burying herself in memories of her daughter Nina, who escaped her mother’s tight supervision to live with her father and raise her own son.

“The dirt dwellers she dealt with were like subterranean worms and bugs: drug dealers and pimps, abusive parents, gangsters and thieves. She had tried for years not to notice them when off duty, but she couldn’t help it.” (Page 5)

Shortridge’s prose is gorgeous and immediate, sucking readers into the world she’s created in the wilderness of Oregon and the small town outside the forest. When She Flew is about finding one’s convictions to break the mold and follow the right path. It is about striving to be better and to find the freedom to grow. Shortridge’s writing will blow readers away.

As an additional treat, later today, Jennie Shortridge will visit with us and talk about her writing, so stay tuned. Oh, and there will be a giveaway!

FTC Disclosure: Thank you to Jennie Shortridge and Joan Schulhafer Publishing & Media Consulting fpr sending me a free copy of When She Flew for review. Links to book images and titles will lead you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchases are necessary.

Filed Under: fiction, giveaway, Read in 2009, review copy, reviews Tagged With: Jennie Shortridge, When She Flew

Nadirs by Herta Muller

December 16, 2009 by Serena

Nadirs by Herta Muller, who recently won the the Nobel Prize for Literature (click for my article), is a collection of mostly autobiographical short stories about surviving a communist regime and personal drama. This 120-page work is translated from her native German language, and is one of only a few of her works that have been translated into English. Muller straddles the surreal and reality in her stories, and in some cases this balance is executed better than in others. However, her concise and detailed language paints vivid pictures for readers of harsh conditions and deep sadness and other emotions.

“In all the pictures, Father was frozen in the middle of a gesture. In all the pictures, Father looked as though he didn’t know what to do. But Father always knew what to do. That’s why all these pictures were wrong. All those false pictures, all those false faces chilled the room. I wanted to get up from my chair, but my dress was frozen to the wood.” (from “The Funeral Sermon,” Page 2)

In many ways these short stories are more like long, narrative poems filled with imagery, metaphor, and illusion, but there are occasions when Muller clearly outlines what is happening in these families and how it impacts each narrator, who in many cases is a young girl. In “Rotten Pears,” the young narrator travels with her father and her aunt to a village to sell their vegetables and fruit, but staying overnight in a strange village reveals dark family secrets and alludes to other possibilities.

“I walk through the cemetery gate and the bell is in front of my face. The stroke of the bell is under my hair. The stroke is in my pulse next to my eyes and in my weary wrists under the tangled fern. The knot that dangles from the rope of the bell is in my throat.” (From “Oppressive Tango,” Page 86)

With stories ranging from just a few pages to 60 pages or more, Nadirs has something for the quick trip on the subway or the long leisurely moments on the couch, though many of these stories deal with deep sadness and betrayal. Muller also is clearly a poet, economizing her words to create images that will burn into readers minds and remain there for many hours, days, weeks, and months. She uses repetition and juxtapositions of black and white, noise and silence, and other techniques to peak readers’ curiosity.

“Their velvety bulging bellies popped and sprinkled white milk on the floor. Then loathing crawled up on me from my shoes and put its tentacles around my throat, and its hands were gaunt and cold like the hands of the old people I saw in those beds with lids in front of which people would sit in silence and prayer.” (From “Nadirs,” Page 18)

Overall an excellent collection to get a sense of Muller’s style, and many of these stories resemble nightmares from a child’s point of view. Unfortunately, the short story from which the collection’s name is taken was the least engaging and overly surreal. With “Nadirs” (click the link for a definition) being the longest story in the collection, it was tough to get through and ultimately some readers (including me) may give up and skip to other stories in the collection.

FTC Disclosure: I borrowed this copy of Nadirs from the library. Clicking on title links will bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page, no purchase necessary.

Filed Under: borrowed copy, fiction, Read in 2009, reviews Tagged With: Herta Muller, Nadirs

Dragon House by John Shors

December 15, 2009 by Serena

“Iris felt as if a unique cultural experience occurred on the back of scooters. She reflected that in America, people drove their cars and rarely even opened their windows. Within cars people tended to be isolated, listening to the radio or maybe talking on the phone to a friend. Cars were people’s places of refuge, highly personalized sanctuaries within which Americans often sought escape. Driving a scooter in Vietnam was a completely different experience. In addition to the ease of conversation, the lack of lanes and laws almost mandated that people acted in cooperation. Drivers didn’t cut one another off or blast their horns. Though they drove quickly, always looking for the fastest route, if an old woman was trying to cross an impossibly busy street, people braked and weaved around her without a second glance.” (Page 184 of ARC)

Iris is just one of the main characters in John Shors’ Dragon House and she’s had a tough childhood with a mostly absent Vietnam veteran father. Noah, her childhood friend and also a veteran but of the Iraq War, accompanies her to Vietnam as Iris strives to fulfill her father’s dream. Through a shifting narrative, readers are shown glimpses of what it means to live on the streets of Vietnam as orphan children with Mia and Minh or as a grandmother Qui raising her leukemia-ridden granddaughter Tam by selling books to American tourists. Dragon House examines how these cultures are misunderstood on both sides and how they clash with one another even in times of peace. Shors deftly mixes sadness with hope to reveal the beauty beneath the grime and compassion inherent in humanity.

“Iris thought about her father, about how he also came home shattered from a war that wasn’t of his making. A marriage and a daughter hadn’t saved him from his demons. Why would Saigon save Noah? Though Iris was unsure, she knew what her father would say, knew he’d want her to bring Noah.” (Page 13 of ARC)

Readers will be blown away by the vivid descriptions of Vietnam and the evolution of the novel’s main characters as they find themselves in a foreign land and repurpose their lives to meet the needs of others and fulfill a dream. Shors uses description in a way that conveys deep emotional scarring and how that damage is repaired over time.

“The city was a kaleidoscope of old versus new, memories versus ideas, stone versus chrome.” (Page 15 of ARC)

Mia and Minh, who sell fans and gamble with tourists over games of Connect Four, display strength amidst adversity, but like Noah, even the strongest of us have our breaking points. Qui and Tam also display significant strength. In a way these characters offset the deep desolation felt by Noah because they continue to survive and hope, while Noah is steeped in blackness and hopelessness, finding solace in whiskey and pain pills. There is more going on in Dragon House than meets the eye with Iris and Noah preparing a children’s center for opening and these children living on the streets. Readers will be absorbed in Shors’ world and turn the pages hoping for the best resolution possible.

If you missed my interview with John Shors and the giveaway for Dragon House, please check it out.

John Shors’ novel would make an excellent gift for the holidays for the readers among your family and friends, and a portion of the proceeds from book sales are shared with the Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation (click for more details). Also, check out this write up in the Denver Post about the charity.

FTC Disclosure: I want to thank John Shors for providing me with a free copy of Dragon House for review. Also, thanks to Diane Saarinen of Book Blog Tour Guide for setting up the blog tour. Clicking on images or titles will bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page; No purchase required.

Filed Under: fiction, giveaway, Read in 2009, review copy, reviews Tagged With: Dragon House, John Shors

Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea (Audio)

November 13, 2009 by Serena

Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea on audio was a delight, especially with the voice and passion of Susan Ericksen. Nayeli is a young girl working in a taco shop in Tres Camarones, who continues to idolize her father that left her and her mother many years ago.

Her home is under attack from bandits and drug dealers, but many residents have been abandoned by other men seeking the opportunities found in America. While watching The Magnificent Seven with Yul Brynner, Nayeli and her friends — Tacho, Yolo, and Vampi — decide they are going to make a trek to America to bring back the seven they need to save their town.

The audio brings to life the accents, the culture, the beauty of each scene and the playful sparring between these characters and their new surroundings. Ericksen’s passion for these characters and this story is clear, illuminating the innocence of Nayeli and her friends and the hardships they face.

From the colorful personalities of Nayeli’s gay boss, Tacho, to her vampire/Goth girlfriend Vampi and perky and whiny Yolo to the matriarch of the village Nayeli’s Aunt Irma, Urrea paints a mosaic of Mexico and the struggles of illegal immigrants and those seeking a better life. Readers will by far enjoy the quirky Atomico a warrior from the dump outside Tijuana the most as he seeks to defend the four from the ills of the world.

My husband and I were riveted when the audio rolled us to work every morning. Atomico was my husband’s favorite character because he was like a comic book character; “I AM ATOMICO.” While the border crossings were the most exciting aspects of the novel for my husband, the end of the novel fell flat; he considered it an open ending as if there were more to come — that the journey had not ended. Urrea’s writing is passionate and tangible, capturing the reader instantly and weaving a tale that envelops them completely.

Into the Beautiful North is one of the best novels I’ve read in 2009, but I plan to read this in hard copy as well. As an aside, Anna of Diary of an Eccentric and I were able to meet Luis Alberto Urrea and Susan Eriksen at Book Expo America in May, thanks to the kind dragging of Kathy of Bermudaonion, Julie of Booking Mama, Amy from My Friend Amy, Miriam of Hachette Book Group. Thanks gals!

Filed Under: audiobooks, fiction, Read in 2009, review copy, reviews Tagged With: Into the Beautiful North, Luis Alberto Urrea

Green Books Campaign: Saffron Dreams by Shaila Abdullah

November 10, 2009 by Serena

Welcome to the Green Books Review Campaign, sponsored by Eco-Libris — logo was created by the talented Susan Newman. 100 bloggers, 100 books, 100 reviews — today at 1 PM EST.

We’re here to shed light on the publishers and books available on the market using recycled products and “green” practices. If you missed my initial post about the campaign, check it out now. For updates on the campaign, visit Eco-Libris’ blog.

Saffron Dreams by Shaila Abdullah is printed on 30 percent post-consumer waste and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified book paper. It is also one of the best books I’ve read in 2009. Stay tuned for giveaway information.

“Summer in Houston tastes like dirt, thick bellowing mounds of dust piling on and on until you can’t breathe anymore. Sometimes a squalling wind arrives, pressing its puckered lips to the window panes. Whooooo, it shrieks, whooooosh, and then it cavorts over the pile of dust, depositing it evenly in our miracle-less world. The rain that follows washes it all away, leaving behind an acerbic mustiness that lingers until September brings in the moldiness that I associate with loss, the dull snicker of an autumn past.” (Page 178)

A somber tone permeates Saffron Dreams from Arissa Illahi’s childhood to her present in 2006-2007, weaving in and out through her past and present. Abdullah’s narrative technique will hook readers and carry them alongside Arissa on her journey from Pakistan to America as she matures, marries, gives birth, and reconciles her culture and her religion with her new homeland — a homeland that has grown wary of Muslims following the 2001 terrorist attacks.

“With every horn or commotion guilt-ridden with sins they did not commit. They walked faster when alone. Some women took down their hijabs, afraid of being targeted, and adopted a conservative but Western style of dressing. Men cut their beards. Many postponed plans to visit the country of their origin any time soon. Those who did travel preferred to remain quiet during their journey and chose not to converse in their native language even among family members.” (Page 60)

Saffron’s bitter taste is present throughout the novel as Arissa is steeped in grief and guilt, but the fragrance of hay often associated with saffron lulls her character with memories. Ami, Arissa’s mother, was absent for much of her upbringing and her father allowed her to find love on her own terms. It is this family life that shapes her ideas about love, marriage, and family. Once married to Faizan Illahi, she finds happiness and revels in it, until her life is obliterated in 2001.

Abdullah delves deep into a wife’s guilt, particularly a wife who has adopted a nation as her home that would rather root her out and label her as the enemy. The dichotomy between religion and culture, mother and daughter, grief and survival are tangible and heart-wrenching. Some of the best elements in the story include parallels between art and writing and those two talents suffuse the narrative with a dreamlike quality.

Readers will get lost in Arissa’s grief and her confusion about starting anew. They will cheer her on as her determination takes over. Each chapter provides a date stamp to orient readers, but Arissa’s narrative shifts easily from past to present on more than one occasion as memories take over. Saffron Dreams is more than just an emotional journey of perseverance amid the most trying circumstances and tragic events, it is an evolution of one Muslim woman into a whole self, strong enough to stand alone and blossom.

Please check out the rest of the stops in the Green Books Campaign blog tour; there are a wide range of books from fiction to nonfiction and poetry to sustainable living guides.

I want to thank Shaila Abdullah and her publisher Modern History Press for sending along a free copy for me to review. Clicking on book titles and covers will bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page; no purchases are necessary.

Photo by Galina Stepanova

About the Author:

Shaila Abdullah was born in Karachi, Pakistan in 1971. She has a bachelors degree in English literature and a diploma in graphic design. She also has a diploma in freelance writing. She has written several short stories, articles, and personal essays for various publications, such as Maybe Quarterly, Damazine, Women’s Own, She, Fashion Collection, Dallas Child, Web Guru, About Families, Sulekha, Pakistaniaat, and a magazine of the Daily Dawn newspaper called Tuesday Review, etc. She is a member of the Writers’ League of Texas.

Also, please view her literature blog, her art blog, and her design blog.

Giveaway information: 1 copy, autographed for U.S. residents only

1. Leave a comment about what books you’ve found during the Green Books Campaign that you would buy.

2. Spread the word about the campaign and the giveaway via Twitter, Facebook, Blog, etc., and leave a comment with a link.

3. Followers receive five additional entries and new followers receive three extra entries.

Deadline is Nov. 17, 2009, at 11:59 PM EST

Filed Under: fiction, giveaway, Green books, Green Books Campaign, Read in 2009, review copy, reviews Tagged With: Saffron Dreams, Shaila Abdullah

Willoughby’s Return by Jane Odiwe

November 5, 2009 by Serena

Willoughby’s Return by Jane Odiwe reunites readers with Mr. and Mrs. Brandon and Marianne’s sisters Margaret and Elinor from Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen.

“But three years of married life had done little to really change her. Marianne still had an impetuous nature, she still retained a desire for impulse and enterprises undertaken on the spur of the moment.” (Page 3)

Truer words were never spoken about Marianne. She is the same impetuous girl from Austen’s book, even though she is married to Colonel Brandon and has a son, James. Her husband, however, has obligations to his ward, the daughter of his deceased first love, and her child–a child she had with Marianne’s first love, Mr. Willoughby. Drama, drama, drama fills these pages, just as they filled Marianne’s life in Ausen’s work, but Odiwe adds her own flare to these characters.

Marianne continues to hide things from her husband no matter how innocent the situations may be and her jealousies drive her to make nearly scandalous decisions and snap judgments. However, while this book is titled Willoughby’s Return, he is more of a minor character and his storyline with Marianne looms from the sidelines as her younger sister Margaret and her beau Henry Lawrence take center stage.

“She watched two raindrops slide down the glass, one chasing the other but never quite catching up.” (Page 39)

Margaret is very like Marianne in that she is passionate, romantic, and impetuous. She’s opposed to marriage and Marianne’s matchmaking until Margaret sets eyes on Henry Lawrence. She falls head-over-heels for him, but Odiwe throws a number obstacles in their way.

Readers may soon notice some similarities between Henry Lawrence and Frank Churchill from Emma by Jane Austen, but the romance unravels differently for Henry and Margaret than it does from Frank and Emma. Readers that enjoy Jane Austen’s books and the recent spin-offs will enjoy Willoughby’s Return — a fast-paced, regency novel with a modern flair.

This is the 5th item I’ve completed for the Everything Austen Challenge 2009. I’m one item away from meeting my goal, which will be coming up either later this month or in December.

Don’t forget the Willoughby’s Return giveaway, here.

Additionally, I would like to thank Jane Odiwe and Sourcebooks for sending me a free copy of Willoughby’s Return for review. Clicking on title links will bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page, not purchase necessary.

Filed Under: ARC, everything austen challenge, fiction, Read in 2009, reviews, sourcebooks Tagged With: jane odiwe, Willoughby's Return

Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris

November 2, 2009 by Serena

Charlaine Harris’ Living Dead in Dallas continues the Sookie Stackhouse series. Sookie has agreed to use here telepathic powers to help the vampires when necessary so long as the interviewees go free. The death of a co-worker and friend thrusts Sookie deep into the vampire world.

“‘Angelic Sookie, vision of love and beauty, I am prostrate that the wicked, evil maenad violated your smooth and voluptuous body, in an attempt to deliver a message to me.’

‘That’s more like it.'” (Page 40)

The Sookie Stackhouse series is full of vampires and other supernatural creatures, mystery, and witty dialogue. Readers will find the vampire world created by Charlaine Harris dark, intricate, and mysterious. As their world unravels to reveal its connections with other supernatural communities or its battles with other groups who wish vampires were back in the coffin, readers will be absorbed.

“I realized I’d been rented, like a chainsaw or backhoe. I wondered if the vampires of Dallas had had to put down a deposit against damage.” (Page 47)

Sookie is soon sent to help vampires in Dallas where she is caught up in the community’s feud with the Fellowship of the Sun. Some of the most interesting elements of this novel was learning about Anubis Air and its business of transporting vampires across state lines as cargo and offering them protection when they travel during the day. Living Dead in Dallas is a quick read.

Living Dead in Dallas is a book I purchased from Borders and is in my personal library. Also, clicking on images and text links to books will bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page. No purchases are required.

This is the second book I’ve read for the Sookie Stackhouse Reading Challenge, which I read during the October 2009 24-Hour Read-a-Thon. I’m hopeful I can read the rest and complete the challenge, though the deadline for this one escapes me at the moment.

Filed Under: fiction, purchased, Read in 2009, reviews, sookie stackhouse reading challenge Tagged With: charlaine harris, Living Dead in Dallas

The Widow’s Season by Laura Brodie

October 20, 2009 by Serena

Laura Brodie’s debut novel, The Widow’s Season, is a dirge of grief, wraiths, and resurrection of a professional woman whose been lost in of the song’s cadence for far too long. Set in Jackson, Va., in a small college town, the season’s change and sweep the protagonist, Sarah McConnell along.

“Sarah McConnell’s husband had been dead three months when she saw him in the grocery store. He was standing at the end of the seasonal aisle, contemplating a display of plastic pumpkins, when, for one brief moment, he lifted his head and looked into her eyes.” (First line, Page 3)

Not only does Sarah mourn her husband and the life they had, but she also mourns the life they dreamt about, the life that was snatched from them time and again, and the illusion of their future happiness. The Widow’s Season is a character driven novel that teeters on the brink of despair as Sarah attempts to navigate her after-life alone. Nate, her brother-in-law, has lost his mother and his brother in such a short time, and he, like Sarah, does not grieve in an outward display of sobs and outbursts, but turns inward. Sarah’s friend Margaret anchors her to reality and persuades her to meet for tea every Friday and join her widow’s group once a month. Unlike, Sarah, Nate’s support system is gone, but he has his investment work to bury himself in.

“An hour later, when she pulled up at the cabin, she had the old sensation of arriving at an empty house. No lights shone in the windows; the grass was still unmowed. When she unlocked the door, an immense stillness confronted her.” (Page 151)

Told in third person, Brodie’s language has a eerie, otherworldly quality that will suck readers easily into an alternate reality. Grief drips from the pages of Sarah’s life and will consume readers in its wake as she lifts the fog that has surrounded her existence and uncovers her strength, poise, and determination. Fresh and frank is Brodie’s writing as if she has first hand knowledge of deep desolation and how it can twist reality into alternative that is more palatable.

A great selection for the Fall and Halloween holiday, though it is not a ghost story in a traditional sense, The Widow’s Season is about transformation and living with ones ghosts.

Thanks to Laura Brodie for sending me a free copy of her novel for review.

If you missed my interview with Laura Brodie on D.C. Literature Examiner, you should check it out and find out what she recommends for Halloween reading. Stay tuned for Laura Brodie’s guest post later today.

Also Reviewed By:

As Usual, I Need More Bookshelves
Missy’s Book Nook

Filed Under: fiction, Read in 2009, review copy, reviews Tagged With: Laura Brodie, The Widow's Season